Curtain Call August 11, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Tour De France , add a comment
Wow! What a difference 750 days or so makes….Looking back just two years ago, we go from total euphoria in watching Lance Armstrong, one of the premier athletes in the world, win his seventh straight Tour de France to the announcement yesterday that the Discover Channel cycling team would disband at yearend.
I am sad and disilllusioned by a sport that I love so much. It is painful to watch some of these athletes tarnish the sport so greatly, that no sponsor will step in and take the reigning tour de France championship team. Cycling is at a new low. Can it recover?
Check out our First YouTube Video: Baptism 2007 July 26, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Chicago, Sunday Services, Church, Inside Park, Missional, DifferenceMakers , add a commentPark is now officially a YouTube broadcaster! Check out the musical slideshow of the awesome baptisms of 71 people on the beaches of Lake Michigan in the shadow the the awesome Chicago skyline from Sunday, July 22nd.
Baptism Sunday — What a Day! July 22, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Chicago, Inside Park, Missional , add a commentEach year, on the third Sunday in July, we gather at 7 am at North Avenue beach in Chicago to hold our annual baptism service. This year, there were 71 people who were baptized in Lake Michigan in front of their friends, family and the Park Community Church family.
It is so cool to have our baptism service in the shadow of the skyline of this world-class, global city. What a great day to hear the stories of people’s live who have been transformed by Jesus Christ working in their lives! … To hear how their lives were before Christ and the impact that Christ has had on their lives…..and to remind myself of how much Christ has transformed my life in the 23 years since I accepted Christ as my Lord and Savior. This day rocks!
Here is the setup in Solheim Center, the site of our Baptism celebration service for about 1,000 people
Differencemakers: Golf to God July 7, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Sunday Services, Methods & Strategies, Missional, The Cultural Conversation, DifferenceMakers , add a comment
I love golf and am excited about a successful ministry founded by a professional golfer that is using golf to help others find Jesus on the fairways. This ministry is called “In His Grip” Golf Association, a ministry that teaches churches how to use golf as a way to share the Gospel. Founder Scott Lehman said he got the idea for In His Grip from driving by golf courses on Sunday mornings and seeing men teeing off instead of going to church.
“A lot of Sundays, you go by the golf course and they’re really packed,” Lehman said. “We felt like there was an opportunity to take our faith to the fairways and just meet them (golfers) where they’re at and introduce them to the church and ultimately to Jesus Christ.”
In His Grip holds training workshops for churches and shows them how to host golf tournaments to reach out to men who aren’t active church-goers. Scott said “Golf courses are ideal places to share the Gospel because it takes hours to play a round, and it’s easy to talk while walking along fairways and riding in golf carts”. In His Grip held its first tournament nearly 10 years ago and has hosted about 150 tournaments across the country. Lehman, 46, a golf teaching professional, holds training sessions for churches in different regions of the country. “Our vision is to reach every golfer in every nation,” Lehman said. “Right now we’re seeing a big trend of churches looking to meet people outside the four walls of the church, and this is a strategy to help them do that.”
I love this ministry that is going out to reach those who would not otherwise attend church! They even have a Golfer’s Bible printed that intersperses throughout the biblical text thirty-two full-color pages of inspirational messages teed up to reach the golfer’s heart, plus thirty-two more pages of devotions at the back of this special edition. Check it out!
Silver Surfer as Christ Figure June 17, 2007
Posted by Steve in : The City, Movies, The Cultural Conversation , add a comment
Just got home from seeing the latest summer blockbuster, Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer that has been brought to the big screen by Stan Lee and 20th Century Fox. It was an excellent movie with incredible special effects and a strong Christ figure in the Silver Surfer. The good story line comes from the comic books (although no face for Galactus?). The cinemaphotography was superb. This blockbuster is supposed to have done nearly $60 million this opening weekend. It will be interesting to see how it does. As of Sunday night, it had more than 4, 700 ratings and an average fan rating of “B” at Yahoo Movies. What do you think?
Wikipedia tells us that “the Silver Surfer is a fictional Marvel Comics superhero created in 1966 by writer Stan Lee and artist/co-plotter Jack Kirby. They created a character, Norrin Radd, who was a young astronomer of the planet Zenn-La. In order to save his homeworld from destruction by a fearsome cosmic entity known as Galactus, Norrin made a bargain with the being, pledging himself to serve as its herald. Imbued in return with a small portion of Galactus’ Power Cosmic,[1] Norrin acquired great powers, a silvery appearance, and a surfboard-like vehicle — all modeled after a childhood fantasy of his. Known from then on as the Silver Surfer, Norrin began to roam the cosmos searching for new planets for Galactus to consume. When his travels finally took him to Earth, the Surfer came face to face with the Fantastic Four, a team of powerful superheroes that helped him to rediscover his nobility of spirit. Betraying Galactus, the Surfer saved Earth but was punished in return with everlasting exile there.[2]
Writer/editor Stan Lee, Kirby’s “Fantastic Four” collaborator, loved the character. “I felt that he had to represent more than the typical comic-book hero,” he wrote later. Lee gave the Surfer his own book (without Kirby) and made the character a noble philosopher and Christ figure, trapped on Earth, suffering for mankind’s sins, even doing battle with a Satan stand-in called Mephisto.
Check it out!
Best Restaurant in America? In Chicago, of Course June 15, 2007
Posted by Steve in : The City, Chicago, The Cultural Conversation , add a commentWhere do you think the best restaurant in America is? New York, L.A, San Francisco?…..Nope — It is right ihere in the great city of CHicago.
Frontera Grill, chef Rick Bayless’ contemporary Mexican restaurant here in the city, recently won the James Beard award for the nation’s best restaurant. The awards, presented in New York City, are considered the pinnacle of the culinary industry. This is the Frontera’s first Beard award, though Bayless has collected a few over the years, including one for outstanding chef in 1995. The lively River North restaurant has been packing in the crowds since opening on Clark Street in 1987 and with this award, don’t expect that to change anytime soon.
Topolobampo — the dressier sister restaurant to Frontera — has been nominated twice for Beard awards.
Also taking top honors was Tru restaurant, which snagged the outstanding service award after being nominated in that category for the past three years. At the Streeterville restaurant, women are given stools on which to rest their handbags, and every diner leaves with a little bag of baked goodies.
The only other Chicago winner was chef Grant Achatz of Alinea restaurant, who was named best chef in the Great Lakes region. His competition included fellow Chicago chefs Bruce Sherman of North Pond and Carrie Nahabedian of Naha.
Ministry Travel: Ensure the Lowest Fares May 29, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Technology, Methods & Strategies, Tech Tips , add a comment(Yahoo) Have you ever bought an airline ticket from ministry travel only to see the price fall in the enusing weeks and your frustration rise as you try to manage costs? Now there is something you can do about it.
Few customers realize it, but many airlines will give refunds if they cut the price after you have bought a ticket. Alaska Airlines, JetBlue, Southwest, United and US Airways all offer vouchers for the full price difference — if the price drops $200, you can get a $200 coupon towards a future trip. Others offer vouchers, or cash, after deducting change fees (which can run up to $100). In industry jargon, it is called a “rollover,” and in most cases it only works if you bought the ticket directly from the airline. (It generally won’t work if you bought them via a Web site such as Expedia.com or Orbitz.com, unless the price drops in the first 24 hours.)
The rollover policies have been in place for decades, but, until recently, it has been tough for consumers to figure out when their flight’s price has changed. The catch is you have to call while the lower price is in effect to get your rollover. That is where a new Web site, Yapta.com, has come up with a clever way to take some of the anxiety out of buying airline tickets.
Yapta, a company run by a former Alaska Airgroup Inc. pricing vice president, was launched May 22. It tracks fares on specific flights you select before or after you buy a ticket. That is an improvement over Web sites that just track markets, but don’t allow you to specify which flights you really want. You can use Yapta before you buy to alert you by email to pricing changes on a particular trip, or let you know if the price drops after you’ve bought a ticket and you’re eligible for a refund. In order to obtain the voucher, you need to phone the airline directly. (You usually can’t snare one online.) So as you are planning on attending that future multi-site conference, input your preferred flights and when they get to your budgeted level, it will notify you and you can then purchase the tickets.
One woman, who signed up with Yapta to test the site before its launch, paid $800 each for four tickets from San Francisco to Kona, Hawaii. A few days later, she got notification from Yapta that the price had dropped to about $400 per ticket. She called United Airlines and got tickets reissued at the lower price plus four $400 vouchers. “There’s no way I would have been checking sites to see if the price went down,” she said.
Check it out now here.
Tech Tip: Gmail Attachment Upgrade May 23, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Technology, Tech Tips , add a commentGmail just upgraded the maximum attachment size from 10 MB to 20 MB. While Gmail in the past let some larger (10+Mb) files, they have now increased the sending size to 20 MB in one message. This may still not work for the folks at the other end as the are few mail providers that will accept a such a big message, (Yahoo Mail Plus, or other premium accounts).
NYT: Shifting Emphasis for Evangelicals May 22, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Weblog , add a commentArticle today in the New York Times….what do you think about the purported shift? Leave a comment
God Tour May 18, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Weblog , add a commentI will be out of touch for most of the next few days as I go to visit Park friends in East Asia and China with group from our church. God is doing powerful things in East Asia — I can’t wait to hear about some of those things. Check out World Magazine’s article last year here, which talks about the faith transformation of many CEOs and the impact they have made on their companies. Here is a Feb 2006 about Christianity Comes to China’s Cities.
Lemond Enters Stage Left May 16, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Tour De France , add a commentI am a big cycling fan and am watching with interest the Floyd Landis doping hearing….For total coverage of the Landis affair, check out the #1 internet source …Trust But Verify
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Here comes Lemond, stage left….I ask myself, what sort of media circus we will see as the USADA brings Greg Lemond up to testify?
1.. Will he testify that he talked to Landis after the announcement last year?
2. What would have been said in THAT conversation?
3. What can Lemond possibly add to the proceedings?
4. Does Greg Lemond believe in his own mind that HE is the only athlete ever to win multiple Tour de France races without doping?
Tomorrow we see as 3-time Tour winner Greg LeMond is expected to (more…)
Can I Get a Witness! May 15, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Tour De France , add a commentFor you non-cycling fans, join us as we review the day to day deliberations inthe Floyd Landis “doping” hearing…..catch all the best and timeliest Landis updates at Trust But Verify
Is he guilty and a cheater whose time is up? Or is he innocent and is being railroaded by an out-of-control authority? Stay tuned right here….
In Tuesday’s deliberations on the Floyd Landis case, a number of potential witnesses names’ were released (more than 40 in total-mostly technical witnesses about lab procedures and analysis procedures), including Eddy Merckx, Allan Lim (a Landis coach), Greg LeMond and John Eustice (retired cyclist). Lemond will be the most interesting and potentially provide the most fireworks, IMHO. You will remember that LeMond has been openly skeptical about Lance Armstrong’s statements that he was able to win seven straight Tours without doping. LeMond also is believed to have spoken with Landis by phone in the days after his positive tests became public. In addtion, the USDA will likely call up retired cyclist, Joe Papp, who is expected to testify how he benefited from testosterone usage during his racing career.
HOW DOES IT ALL WORK IN THE HEARING AT PEPPERDINE?
The San Jose Mercury News states that the hearing is set up with a three-member arbitration panel that will conduct the hearing under the commercial rules of the American Arbitration Association. The arbitrators are Richard McLaren, a Montreal lawyer appointed by the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency; Bay Area lawyer Christopher L. Campbell, who was picked by Floyd Landis’ attorneys, and Patrice Brunet, a Canadian lawyer chosen by McLaren and Campbell as a neutral arbitrator. The format loosely follows U.S. court procedures. Both sides will make opening arguments and then present evidence and expert witnesses. All witnesses must answer questions from arbitrators and the other party. The panel is expected to rule in June. Many expect the ruling to be appealed to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, whose decisions are binding.
Ouch! May 8, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Weblog , add a commentDETROIT (Reuters) - The Detroit Piston’s overpowering scoring and strong defense lifted them to a crushing 108-87 win over our beloved Chicago Bulls and put us down 2 games to zero in the Eastern Conference semi-final series on Monday. “The thing that’s most surprising is both games haven’t been competitive,” Bulls coach Scott Skiles told reporters. “Both times from the jump ball, they’ve owned us all over the floor.” The victory was the sixth straight in the playoffs for the Pistons, who swept the Orlando Magic in four games in their opening series. Game Three of the best-of-seven series is in Chicago on Thursday. Come on home Bulls and regroup!
Landis Bankruptcy? April 27, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Tour De France , 1 comment so far
AP — Yikes! Say it ain’t so Floyd.
Floyd Landis said he’s lost almost $10 million in potential earnings and might need to declare bankruptcy since being accused of using drugs to help win the Tour de France last year. He faces a two-year racing ban and would be the first cyclist in the Tour’s 104-year history to lose his title for doping after testing positive for inappropriate levels of testosterone. (more…)
Old vs. New — Take a Look! April 7, 2007
Posted by Steve in : The City, Powerful Passages , add a commentAs we approach Easter tomorrow here in Chicago, it is worth taking a read of ISAIAH 53 in the Old Testament — This amazing passage from one of the Hebrew Prophets was written more than 700 years before the birth of Jesus, and contains writings that clearly identify and prophesy the coming life and mission of Jesus of Nazareth. This chapter is often cited by Jews and Gentiles as prophecy that must be fulfilled by the Messiah. Franz Delitzsch made an extraordinary but true comment about the 53rd chapter of Isaiah when he said that this chapter is “the most central, the deepest, and the loftiest thing that the Old Testament prophecy, outstripping itself, has ever achieved.”
If you have never done so, take ten minutes and investigate this Jesus. He is the Truth, Check out the claims of Jesus here.
No other person has arisen to lay claim to being a Messiah who would suffer for mankind. Isaiah 53 is found in the the Jewish Tanakh today, though it is generally left out of the weekly synagogue readings, as are many other texts of the Bible. When people read Isaiah 53 without knowing which part of the Bible it comes from, many often assume is from the New Testament. Though many modern rabbis describe the sufferings as (more…)
New Jib Jab Video - The News March 29, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Weblog , add a commentI love Jib Jab — they make very funny videos that parody everyone from the President to Arnold Schwartzenegger. Check out the announcement on Tech Crunch:
JibJab, the creators of the famous 2004 U.S. presidential election parody cartoon “This Land” have a new original video out called “The News. The new video premiered tonight at the annual Radio and Television Correspondents Dinner. All of their original videos can be viewed here
. JibJab is slowly expanding from pure content creation to becoming a hub for humor-related video and other media. The company was founded by brothers Gregg and Evan Spiridellis and is currently headquartered in Santa Monica, CA. JibJab raised a Series A round of funding from Jon Flint at Polaris Ventures in June.
Watch the video here.
Only 20 Minutes to Live March 27, 2007
Posted by Steve in : Sunday Services, Church , add a commentOn Sunday, Ron May spoke about his harrowing experience in the Crash of Flight 232 on July 19, 1989 in Sioux City Iowa. Click here for his audio message. Click here for the Wikipedia page. Click here for the Google video.
One of his statements which I have reflected on for the last few days is that the pilot came on with about 20 minutes to go and said to the passengers “Folks, the damage to Engine number 2 is more extreme than we thought….We are going to make an emergency landing in Sioux City in about 20 minutes. I’m not going to kid you, it going to be a rough landing…I don’t want to fool you…it’s going to be really rough. I will come back on and give you several warnings about the time, then finally I will come back and tell you when to brace.”
What would you do if you were told you potentially have 20 minutes to live?
Since Sunday, I have tried to look at my watch and say to myself — Steve, you’ve got 20 minutes to live — then I wonder what and who would I think about, and how would I reflect on my life. I want to love Jesus with all my heart and don’t feel like I have done that yet — that would be a major regret right now if I had 20 minutes. I want to love my wife and kids better. I wnat all of my kids to come to accpet Jesus as their Savior. I want to see many come to know the salvation I have experienced in my own life…..try this exercise and see what you do as a result……
Only 100 in the Village March 8, 2007
Posted by Steve in : The Cultural Conversation , add a comment
I loved this unique way to look at the world when it first came out and now the info appears to have been reviewed and verified. It sure gives you a different perspective when you think about the world as a village of only 100. What do you think?
If we could shrink the earth’s population to a village of precisely 100 people, with all the existing human ratios remaining the same, it would look something like the following. There would be:
60 Asians
12 Europeans
8 Latin Americans/Carribeans
5 North Americans
1 Oceanian
14 Africans
50 would be female
50 would be male
73 would be non-white
27 would be white
27 would be 0-14 years old
65 would be between 15-64 years old
7 would be older than 65
33 would be Christian
20 would be Muslim
14 would be other religions
13 would be Hindus
12 would be non-religious or agnostics
6 would be Buddhists
2 would be atheists
